Between lottery ticket sales and its six casinos, Maryland posted a record $1.25 billion in revenue, a12.1 percent increase, for fiscal year 2018, which ended June 30, 2018, according to the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency. Director Gordon Medenica. “It was a great year all around, and we couldn’t be prouder of the contribution that the Lottery and the casinos made to important state programs. It’s especially gratifying to see both the Lottery and the casinos growing simultaneously.”
For the first time in FY 2018, the state lottery beat the $2 billion mark in sales, setting a new profit record of $575.6 million. In addition, players were paid a record $1.247 billion in prizes in FY 2018. Lottery sales increased 4.2 percent to a record $2.043 billion. The bottom line is the lottery paid out an average of more than $3.4 million per day in prizes during FY2018.
In FY 2018, for the fourth consecutive year, instant ticket sales posted a double-digit increase, rising 11 percent to an all-time record of $750.9 million, beating the previous record of $676.8 million set in FY2017, according to Maryland Lottery.
Pick 4, Maryland Lottery’s most popular game, set a new sales record of $296.2 million. The computer-animated horseracing game Racetrax also set a sales record of $192.6 million.
Rising lottery sales also benefited retailers, whose sales commission grew 5.4 percent to a record high of $153.7 million, surpassing the previous record of $145.9 million set in FY 2017. The Lottery’s approximately 4,500 retailers received an average commission of more than $34,000, according to Maryland Lottery.
At the state’s six state casinos, gaming revenue rose 18.2 percent to a record $1.68 billion in FY 2018. The state received $676.7 million and the Maryland Education Trust Fund received $496.7 million, according to the state regulator.
But the news isn’t all good, as Maryland casino revenue declined for the in June and again in July after posting a record $156.5 million in May. In July, Ocean Downs Casino posted the largest revenue growth of 34 percent to $8.7 million year-on-year. But MGM National Harbor took in the most money, as revenue increased 14.9 percent to $58.3 million in July 2018 compared to the previous year period.
MGM’s closest competitor, Live! Casino & Hotel, reported $47.7 million in revenue, up 1 percent from a year ago. Revenue at Rocky Gap Casino Resort increased 1.5 percent to $5.2 million in July 2018.
The biggest loser July 2018 was Horseshoe Casino in Baltimore, where gaming revenue fell 11.1 percent to $20.5 million. Hollywood Casino in Perryville reported a revenue decrease of 6.7 percent to $6.1 million in July 2018.
